Opposition Leaders Complain as Tajikistan’s Election Campaign Draws to a Close

Tajikistan's parliamentary election February 27 is widely expected to deliver a dominating legislative majority for the ruling party. Opposition leaders say, however, that the vote should already be considered tainted by government misconduct during the campaign.

Six political parties are contesting the elections, in which 22 of the 63 seats up for grabs will be determined by apportionment from party lists. The remaining 41 seats are being contested by 162 candidates in first-past-the-post races. President Imomali Rahmonov's People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan (PDPT) is the only party that is fielding a full electoral slate. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

As the official campaign season drew to a close February 25, representatives of several political parties complained bitterly about government harassment. At a news conference February 24, Rahmatullo Valiyev, the deputy leader of the Democratic Party, accused the government of "blatant" campaign violations. He alleged that authorities censored his speech on state television, deleting a three-minute segment during which he complained about the government's unfair practices during the campaign. He went on to say that law enforcement officials had hampered to party's efforts to distribute campaign leaflets.

Rahmatullo Zoirov, the leader of the Social Democratic Party, indicated that his party had documented multiple instances of improper behavior by officials – "beginning with the manipulation of registration requirements and ending with [the] intimidation" of campaign workers. He added that the party planned an appeal to the Supreme Court, seeking to reverse what it characterized as the improper disqualification of one of its highest-profile candidates, Faiziniso Vokhidova.

Meanwhile, Jumakhon Bobiyev, a representative of the Islamic Renaissance Party (IRP) in the southern Kulyab Region, said local officials were pressuring residents to vote for the PDPT. "They [local officials] go house-to-house, telling people to vote for PDPT candidates," Bobiyev said. "Those who refuse are told that the PDPT will win in any event."

Though critical of the government's practices, the IRP's leader, Said Abdullo Nuri, offered individual praise for Rahmonov. "One of the precious things and important achievements that [the president] gained is peace and stability," Nuri said during a 30-minute speech broadcast on state television February 24. Nuri went on to urge a large turnout, saying that "anyone who fails to vote for whatever reason would be committing a sin both before God and ... the nation."

Rahmonov has insisted that the campaign has been conducted in an open and democratic spirit. [For additional information see the Eurasia Insight archive]. However, preliminary reports compiled by the OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights have tended to corroborate the claims of opposition leaders concerning the existence of an uneven political playing field in Tajikistan.